COHOES >> In “Urinetown: The Musical,” in the opening scene, the characters tell us that a bad title is the second worst thing that can ruin the commercial viability of a Broadway show.

The first? Too much exposition.

Early exposition is not the problem with the production of “Urinetown,” a musical spoof that continues at the Cohoes Music Hall through Sunday. This show’s problem is a slow pace, frail singing voices and actors who barely understand they are in a farce.

The unevenness of the production is too bad as “Urinetown” can be a delightful musical. And to be fair, when all the elements align in this effort, there is fun to be had. The cast is earnest, energetic and enthusiastic in their desire to make the audience laugh.

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As the narrator and bad cop Lockstock, Evan Teich has a broad delivery that lets him wink at the audience, letting them know little of what they see should be taken seriously. He works very well with the diminutive Taylor Lane Ross, who plays the comic urchin Little Sally. It is she who warns about the exposition, but she fails to foreshadow the lack of creativity that engulfs the production.

Even the creditable performances by Teich and Ross soon become repetitive. Excessive mugging is permitted and worse encouraged. Nonetheless, because the performers all show sparks of talent, the blame for the dull derivative performances probably should be placed on the shoulders of the director – who is not named in the program. Draw your own conclusions.

Technical support is also poor, especially the lighting by Jamison Gresens, which has the cast usually in shadows — except when they are in darkness.

But still the material survives.

“Urinetown” is about a town where poor conservation techniques has left the community unable to cope with a drought. But rather than solve the problem, corporate greed takes over and exploits the population. A private firm, You’re in Good Company, bribes politicians to pass laws giving them exclusive rights to public facilities and to pass repressive laws enslaving the poor.

Finally a leader emerges from the masses and the daughter of the corporation joins the community to overthrow the repressive regime. Good triumphs over evil, but the creators of “Urinetown” tell us good intentions are not always the solution for complex issues. If that sounds disappointing, Sally does warn us not to expect a happy ending.

I would have settled for a happy middle. Like the rebels in the musical, this is a production filled with good intentions that falls short of success.